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Scholarship

National Overseas Scholarship For Students With Disabilities(NOS-SWD)

Composite
Eligibility
The applicant must be a student.
Region
All India
Award
Composite
By Expertie Editorial Team · Expertie editorial desk

Overview

About NOS-SWD

The National Overseas Scholarship for Students with Disabilities is a central-sector scheme run by the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), which sits under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. It funds Indian students with disabilities who want to read for a Master's degree or a Ph.D. at a foreign university.

The scheme is meant to take the cost out of studying abroad for a student who has already secured admission to an accredited overseas institution. Its support is composite rather than a single grant: tuition fees are paid alongside a maintenance allowance, travel, and further allowances. The number of awards is fixed each year – twenty are offered annually, of which six are set aside for women candidates.

Eligibility is limited to students with a benchmark disability, meaning 40 per cent or more disability as defined under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, backed by a valid disability certificate. The specified fields of study cover Engineering and Management, Pure and Applied Sciences, Agricultural Science and Medicine, Commerce, Accounting and Finance, and Humanities, Social Science and Fine Arts. Applications are received through the year.

Sources: myScheme (Government of India) – National Overseas Scholarship For Students With Disabilities · Barristery.in – National Overseas Scholarship For Students With Disabilities: Eligibility, Benefits, Application Process · TeachersBadi – National Overseas Scholarship for Students with Disabilities to study Abroad

Who runs it

Provider

Ministry Of Social Justice and Empowerment

Central Government

Department Of Empowerment Of Persons With Disabilities · Department Of Empowerment Of Persons With Disabilities (DoEPwDs)

At a glance

Key details

LevelCentral
Scheme typeCentral Sector Scheme
CategoryEducation & Learning, Social welfare & Empowerment
BeneficiariesIndividual
Benefit typeComposite
Application modeOffline

Calendar

Important dates

Across all open application cycles.

Important dates by cycle
CycleStageDate

Who can apply

Eligibility criteria

The applicant must be a student.
The applicant must be Admitted into (or received an unconditional offer of admission) Masters's level courses and Ph.D. courses abroad in institutions/universities accredited by the Government/authorized body of that country.
The Disability Percentage of the applicant must be 40% & above.
The applicant must be 35 years or lesser in age, as on the first day of the month of advertisement of the scheme.
The Total Family Income of the applicant (from all sources) must not exceed ₹ 6 lakh per annum.

Who cannot apply

Exclusions

  • Bachelors Level courses, in any discipline, are not covered under this scheme.
  • candidates already staying or studying or having completed studies abroad by utilizing any other scholarship from State Government, other agency, or through their own funds are not eligible to apply under this scheme.
  • Not more than two children with disabilities of the same parents will be entitled to receive benefits of the scheme. Provided in case the second child is a _twin, the 'scholarship under this scheme will be admissible to both the twins.
  • The candidate is not eligible for a scholarship to pursue the same level (Masters/Ph.D.) of course for which he/she has already acquired the qualification from any University/Institution either in India or abroad.
  • Scholarship for studying in any class will be available for only one year. If a student has to repeat a class, she / he would not get scholarship for that class for a second (or subsequent) year.
  • A scholarship holder under this scheme will not hold any other scholarship/ stipend. If awarded any other scholarship/ stipend, the student can exercise his/her option for either of the two scholarships/stipends, whichever is more beneficial to him/her and should inform the awarding authority through the Head of the Institution about the option made. No scholarship will be paid to the students under this scheme from the date he/she accepts another scholarship/stipend. The student can however, accept free lodging or a grant or ad-hoc monetary help from the State Government or any other source for the purchase of books, equipment or for meeting the expenses on board and lodging in addition to the scholarship amount paid under this scheme.

What you get

Award & benefits

  • Annual Maintenance Allowance: For United States of America (USA) & other countries except UK: $15400 (US Dollars); For United Kingdom (UK): 9900 GBP (Great Britain Pounds)1. Contingency Allowance: For United States of America (USA) & other countries except UK: $1500 (US Dollars); For United Kingdom (UK): 1100 GBP (Great Britain Pounds)1. Equipment Allowance: 1500 INR1. Tuition Fees: Actual as charged1. Visa Fees: Actual Visa Fees in INR1. Poll Tax: Actual as charged1. Medical Insurance Premium: Actual as charged1. Incidental Journey Allowance & Equipment Allowance: 20 US Dollars for each or its equivalent in INR.1. Air Passage: Air passage grant on actual basis from India to the nearest place to the educational institution and back to India, by economy class and shortest route in arrangements with the national carrier, shall be provided.1. Local Travel: Second or Coach Class railway fare from the port of disembarkation to the place of study and back. 1. In case of far-flung places not connected by rail, bus fare(s) from the place of residence to the nearest railway station, actual charge of crossing by ferry, airfare to the nearest rail-cum-air Station and/or second class railway fare by the shortest route to the port of embarkation and back will be permissible. For attending interviews by the candidates at the place decided by the Government of India, the second-class fare/ordinary class bus fare from the city of their place of residence to the city in which the interviews for selection have been decided by the Government of India will be permissible.

What to prepare

Documents required

Duly completed Pro-forma in duplicate
Certificate of Proof of Date of Birth (Birth Certificate or Certificate of Passing 10th standard)
Disability Certificate
Voter ID
Aadhaar Card
Proof of residence, if the address mentioned in the application is different from the address mentioned in the Voter ID/Aadhaar Card.
Copy of PAN Card of the applicant.
Copy of Bank Account linked with Aadhaar No.
Copy of PAN Card of Father/Mother/Guardian/Spouse
Copy of Certificates and mark sheets in support of Educational qualifications.
Income Tax Certificate in prescribed proforma
Income Tax Return of the candidate/parents/guardians whose income is considered to determine the income ceiling.
Details of the proposed study (in not more than 500 words)
Copy of admission papers from the accredited universities/Institutions
Copies of offer of admission by the university/prospectus etc.
Self-attested certificate to the effect that you are not availing of any other scholarship for the same Course of study.
Income Certificate Form.
Source(s):
http://disabilityaffairs.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/scholarship2(1).pdf
http://disabilityaffairs.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/Appl-Form%20-NOS(1).pdf

Step by step

How to apply

  1. 1
    Apply offline

    http://disabilityaffairs.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/Appl-Form%20-NOS(1).pdf

Questions

NOS-SWD – FAQ

Disclaimer

Scheme details are compiled from myScheme, the Government of India’s official scheme-discovery platform, and are reproduced without alteration. Amounts, deadlines and eligibility change between cycles — always confirm on the official links above before applying. Expertie does not process applications or charge fees.

Written by

Expertie Editorial Team

Expertie editorial desk

Published 8 Jul 2026 Last updated 8 Jul 2026verified data

Sources & References

  1. 1.myScheme (MeitY, Government of India) official-site· accessed 2026-07-08